Hearty Homemade Vegetable Soup

Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes Servings: 8-10 Serving size: 1 cup

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion (peeled and cut in half)
3 cups raw cauliflower (broken into florets)
3 carrots (sliced)
3 celery stalks (sliced)
1 small zucchini (cut into large chunks)
2 cups frozen cut green beans (place in bowl on counter until ready to use)
1 14 ounce can whole tomatoes (cut or broken into large pieces – do NOT discard the juice)
6 cups Vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried parsley (1 tablespoon fresh)
½ teaspoon thyme
1 bay leaf
Fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions:
Heat olive oil in large soup pot. Add carrots and celery. Saute for 2-3 minutes until tender crisp. I like to add about a tablespoon of water and cover to steam the vegetables. Stir occasionally. Add vegetable stock, tomatoes with juice from can, oregano, parsley, thyme, onion, pepper and bay leaf. Heat until steaming. Add zucchini. Cook another 3 to 5 minutes. Add green beans (should be slightly thawed by now). Bring to a simmer. Simmer for about another 5 minutes or until vegetables are soft but still tender crisp. Zucchini should be soft and opaque but not mushy.

Discard bay leaf and onion. Serve.

Variations:
*Add cooked Ditalini pasta for a heartier more filling soup. We leave it on the side and add it to our bowls so having carbs is optional.
*Add 1 can navy beans (rinsed and drained) for a high protein variation.

Tips:
*You can cut the tomatoes right in the can using kitchen shears.
*Adding the frozen green beans slows down the cooking process to prevent the other vegetables from getting overcooked.
*Let the soup cool in the pot. Then freeze half. To thaw: pull out the soup at least one day before use and place in refrigerator overnight. Heat in a medium saucepan on low heat until heated through. Do NOT boil. If you decide to pull it out and serve it on the same day, you can thaw on defrost in the microwave before heating on the stove. Or you can continue to heat in the microwave after thawing. It has been my experience that the microwave reheating method can make the vegetables a little mushy.